New cookbook features 100 classic Filipino recipes for beginners
LOOKING to unleash your inner chef and finally master some Filipino dishes during this stay-at-home period? There’s a new cookbook with the premise of “easy” savory and sweet recipes from pork sisig to ginataang bilo bilo (rice balls in sweet coconut milk). “The Easy Filipino Cookbook: 100 Classics Made Simple” — released on March 24…
RECIPE: Roline Casper’s Fresh Lumpia
Reprinted with permission from “The Easy Filipino Cookbook: 100 Classics Made Simple” (Rockridge Press, 2020) Dairy-free, vegetarian PREP TIME: 30 minutes | COOK TIME: 20 minutes | MAKES: 10 lumpia This version of lumpia is fresh, not fried. It is topped with its own special sauce and crushed peanuts. Loaded with vegetables and chickpeas, this…
Free rides for Metro Manila health workers
The second week of Luzon’s enhanced community quarantine opened with the Department of Transportation (DOTr) adding two more routes to the free shuttle service for health workers in Metro Manila for a total of 16 routes. “From the three initial routes since the program began on 18 March 2020, it now has 16 routes. This…
COVID-19 cases in PH breach 700-mark
The Philippines has 71 new coronavirus cases, bringing the national tally to 707, the Department of Health on Thursday, March 26, reported. Meanwhile, seven patients passed away, bringing the overall death toll in the country to 45. All the fatalities are Filipinos with no recent travel history overseas. They are as follows: • 72-year-old Filipino…
PH Senator Pimentel slammed for violating quarantine after testing positive for coronavirus
Senator Aquilino “Koko” Pimentel III on Wednesday, March 25, confirmed that he has tested positive for the novel coronavirus (COVID-19), becoming the second senator to contract the disease after Senator Migz Zubiri. “I was informed last night. I’m okay, I just have a slight sore throat. I don’t have fever nor chills,” he said. Pimentel…
California Divorce with a twist: The military spouse
SAN Diego is “military town” and Navy and Marine Corps families abound, as well as retirees from different branches of our military. The military life is a test of resilience and grit for many families, with divorce as almost an expectation rather than the exception. The following seeks to address or clarify some common misconceptions…
Washington state names Fil-Am as head of health care response team
GOVERNOR Jay Inslee has named retired Navy Vice Admiral Raquel Cruz Bono as Washington state director for COVID-19 Health System Response Management. As the former chief executive officer and director for the Defense Health Agency, Bono led a joint, integrated support agency that enabled all branches of the U.S. military medical services to provide health…
SoCal-based Pinay pastry chef wins Food Network’s ‘Chopped Sweets’
A Filipina American pastry chef and entrepreneur from Southern California won a recent episode of Food Network’s “Chopped Sweets.” Ginger Lim-Dimapasok, the owner of ube-centric bakery Café 86, triumphed during the Monday, March 16 episode of “Chopped Sweets” entitled “Carnival Crunch Time.” “Chopped Sweets,” a spinoff of the network’s popular show “Chopped,” features four bold…
99 Ranch Market makes public announcement
99 RANCH Market, via a public announcement signed by CEO Alice Chen, recently shared a public announcement on how the company and its stores are addressing shoppers’ needs during the coronavirus crisis. Here’s the announcement in full: To our valued customers and the 99 Ranch Market community: As we continue to monitor the novel coronavirus…
Duterte signs law granting himself special powers vs virus
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte on Wednesday, March 25, signed a bill that grants him special powers to address the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) threat in the country. Under the Bayanihan to Heal As One Act (Senate Bill 1418), the president is authorized to adopt several “temporary emergency measures” to contain COVID-19 as well as to mobilize…
COVID-19 and its effects on immigration
WITH the advent of the Covid-19 pandemic, along with “stay-at-home,” “shelter in place,” quarantines, travel bans, etc., there has been a profound effect on immigration. Here are some of the restrictions, limitations, changes at the present time. This is not an exhaustive list, and is subject to change literally on a daily basis: 1. The…
COVID-19 cases in PH jump to 636
THE Philippines has 84 additional cases of the novel coronavirus (COVID-19), bringing the total count to 636, the Department of Health reported on Wednesday, March 25. The department also recorded three additional deaths, bringing the official death toll to 38. The fatalities include a 56-year-old male Filipino resident of Quezon City with no travel history…
249 coronavirus cases, 6 deaths in Clark County
Gov. Sisolak restricts malaria drugs for treatment, gatherings of more than 10 CLARK County now has 249 coronavirus cases as of Tuesday, March 24, a week after Nevada Governor Steve Sisolak announced a statewide shutdown of nonessential businesses in an effort to slow the spread of the virus. Of the cases reported, 43% are between…
COVID-19 also kills the young
THE younger generation is also vulnerable to get COVID-19! It is a deadly misconception that they are not, a fake news that puts the elderly at even greater risk. Irresponsible people of any age could make this pandemic worse than the virus itself, by being arrogant and inconsiderate, not cooperating with the health authorities. Some…
From registered nurse to first Fil-Am co-owner of a US hospital: How Vicki Rollins transformed a struggling medical center into a five-star rated hospital
ONLY two hospitals in the city of Los Angeles received the highest five-star rating from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) this past January — and one of them is in the heart of Historic Filipinotown and is run by a Filipina American. Formerly known as the Silver Lake Medical Center, the Los…
Money, fear and racism: Navigating the complex relationship between health and hysteria
As the world continues to fight the new coronavirus, the global Asian and Pacific Islander community pushes back on hate, discrimination There are fewer global phenomena that make a bigger impact than a viral pandemic. As told by history, the emergence of a new, deadly pathogen — especially one for which there is no known…
Fil-Am lawyer David Lat remains in critical condition, given ‘experimental’ drug therapy
New York continues to grapple with skyrocketing coronavirus cases and because of the spiking numbers, the state launched earlier this week a clinical trial for an experimental drug treatment to heal those who are critically ill. One of those patients in critical condition is Filipino American lawyer David Lat, who has been intubated on a…
PAL cancels international flights from March 26 to April 14
Flag-carrier Philippine Airlines (PAL) on Tuesday, March 24, announced that it is temporarily suspending international flights from March 26 to April 14 as more people around the world become infected with the coronavirus (COVID-19). The airline said in a statement that it “could no longer sustain even a limited number of international flights” as more…
#RacismIsAVirus: Fil-Am Broadway stars rally against coronavirus anti-Asian racism through social media campaign
Like industries across the country, Broadway has closed the curtain and joined the millions of Americans in self-isolation amid the current outbreak of the new coronavirus. The Broadway community — which includes many notable Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) actors, singers and artists — has always prided itself as an inclusive space that celebrates…
Why not news about those who get well from the coronavirus?
Chris Cuomo, the host of the CNN news-commentary program, “Cuomo Prime Time,” had good news about someone who had been found positive for the strain of coronavirus, known as COVID-19. The good news was that the patient was recovering. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates the COVID-19 mortality rate at 3.4%. That’s the bad news….
Los Angeles County coronavirus cases surge to 660
11 deaths reported, including the first fatality under 18 years old In the past 48 hours, 256 new coronavirus cases have been identified in Los Angeles County, bringing the total number to 662 cases, the county Department of Public Health confirmed on Tuesday, March 24. Public health officials also reported three additional deaths as of…
Bucket list No. 10: Let the music move you
“… And those who were seen dancing were thought to be insane by those who could not hear the music.” — Ascribed to Friedrich Nietzsche CARE to dance? Most people have rhythm embedded in their DNA. Music moves them emotionally and physically. Music is a powerful gravity-defying force that can speak to the soul. Watch…
Is bankruptcy the answer to your debt problems?
A LOT of people who are contemplating bankruptcy as a solution to their debt problems often wonder if it can be avoided at all. They fear that they might be making the biggest mistake of their lives. If you are struggling with debt problems and are starting to feel hopeless about your situation because you…
What is more important to you: The survival of your family and public health or Trump’s call for the US economy to open by Easter?
“THE cure is worse than the problem,” President Donald Trump has been echoing Fox News in his unbelievable call to scale down drastic efforts toward the containment of the coronavirus pandemic and open the U.S. for business by April 12. This cure, prescribed by Trump, is indeed worse than the problem because he will have…
As COVID-19 escalates, officials warn public of fake test kits, scam remedies
Panic-buying, school closures and, of course, contracting the novel coronavirus itself are not the only things to watch out for as the COVID-19 pandemic rages on in the United States. According to separate warnings from the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the public ought to watch out for scammers…
LA public schools to remain closed until May 1
Public schools in Los Angeles, which serve over 700,000 students, will stay closed until May 1 in an effort to slow the spread of the coronavirus. Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) Superintendent Austin Beutner on Monday, March 23 announced that the district-wide closures will be extended for another two months. “I wish I could…